Stevenson-Hamilton battled to get funds to build roads, so he made a plan to raise money. He and his team built a reasonable road between Croc bridge and Lower Sabie on which tourists could travel. But there was nowhere for the visitors to stay. Kruger did not have money to buy tents but had plenty of thorn trees and bushes. The visitors where required to bring their own tents and the reserve staff would then construct a thorn kraal for them which offered some protection against the animals.

Hi Hilda I think it is nice to have people interested in historical Kruger telling us intereting things about it. Thanks MM, Rooies and Ndloti

Apparently during those times that Rooies have mentioned where brave tourists to Kruger were protected by thorn kraals at night there were no rules and visitors came and went as they wished . I think incidences of malaria must have been very high during that bygone era especially during the rainy summer months. What would have been nice to do as a tourist in that period was the train trip through the southern Kruger - perhaps it was a bit more safe and comfortable although I think it must have been expensive as the infrastructure was not as sophisticated to allow for easy travels.

“Whether it's the best of times or the worst of times, it's the only time we've got.”

Denis Conolly writes as follows in his book “The Tourist in South Africa”: “Shingwidzi is a delightful camp with the huts forming a square amongst the Mopani trees and the Ilala Palms with the fire places and cooking facilities in the centre of the square. Shawo is a resting spot on the way to Letaba. Letaba is set amongst a luxuriant forest of wild-fig and mbandu trees. The Maroela Caravan Camp is reached by driving through the Orpen Rest Camp". Unfortunately it was not indicated anywhere in the book when it was published. In a little cookbook for the camper from I think the same period some advice is given regarding camp fire etiquette: “The person who shoves a stump of wood deeper into the camp fire with his foot is inappropriate behavior which does not belong next to the camp fire”. Some of the firewood recommended is from the matsiara and the musanda trees. The scientific names of these trees are not indicated in the little book so I am not sure what trees they are as I am not familiar with those name.

“Whether it's the best of times or the worst of times, it's the only time we've got.”

I think that it is good advice to shove wood into the fire with your foot (provided that you have a shoe on) Scorpions often hide behind the bark of a piece of wood. It moves backwards as the wood becomes hotter on the other end. When you grab the end of the wood with your hands to shove it deeper into the fire, you may get a nasty sting. This advice was given to me by a ranger in Botswana.

Baffers and Rooies:lol. Provided a person have shoes on I think I will also follow Rooies' method . Linked to what MM and Ndloti told us regarding Lt-Colonel Stevenson-Hamilton I have read in the Readers Digest 1981 book “South Africa’s Yesterday’s” that he was determined to enforce the no-shooting law that was being ignored by hunters and he showed that he meant business when he prosecuted a senior police officer for shooting a Wildebeest and fined him £5.00.

Today, as in the past many people use a caravan for accommodation on their holidays to Kruger and other National Parks as I have seen many of them. In the same book mentioned I have read that in 1927 the forerunner of today’s modem caravan was the “road yacht” which was 5,5m long and had two single-berth cabins, lounge, galley and shower-bath . It is further mentioned in the book that a certain Mr and Mrs Dotter traveled through South Africa in a motor caravan which had a teak interior and electric lighting which was charged from the battery . In the book it was mentioned that in 1981 there were an estimated 120 000 caravans on the South African roads of which I think many were destined to Kruger on annual holidays

“Whether it's the best of times or the worst of times, it's the only time we've got.”

The Richtersvelders are great people from the Richtersveld National Park and surrounding regions to the Park. This unique Park may have some harsh conditions climatically wise but it has sometimes been reported in the printed media of the members of the Protea Elderly Food Garden Club who has cultivated a very successful vegetable, fruit and herb garden despite the low annual rainfall .

“Whether it's the best of times or the worst of times, it's the only time we've got.”

During 1927, the first visitors entered Kruger, and they had to pay 1 pound per vehicle. During that year the total income for the reserve was a whopping 3 Pounds. More roads were built and Balule styled bungalows were erected. By 1935, the number of vehicles increased to 6000 per year, with 24 000 passengers entering Kruger.

During the period 1935 and 1944, Mr JH Orpen and his wife Eileen bought 7 farms adjacent to Kruger and donated it to the Parks board. The value of the farms in today's terms were R 2,5 billion (24 500 ha).

Grantmissy wrote:Meandering Mouse once told us some time ago just after I have joined the forum about her visit to a grave in Satara of a ranger who passed away and I think she took the remaining family of the person who died along with her.

(Image from Kruger - Portrait of A National Park)

KNP is sacred.I am opposed to the modernisation of Kruger and from the depths of my soul long for the Kruger of yesteryear! 1000+km on foot in KNP incl 56 wild trails.200+ nights in the wildernessndloti-indigenous name for serval.

That is a lot of money indeed, I never thought about it like that in today's money value. It just proves to me that Mr and Mrs Orpen were truly passionate about nature conservation and Kruger as back in those days the money value must have been just as much as it is in today's terms. I never visit Opren camp without remembering them for their role in ensuring the magnificent and majestic nature conservation area that Kruger is today. Thanks Rooies and all the others for sharing some great information regarding our national parks with us

“Whether it's the best of times or the worst of times, it's the only time we've got.”

@Grantmissy. In those days the value of the land in the greater Kruger area was about a quarter of what land in the Free State was. During the 1960's, my dad had an option to buy land on the banks of the Klaserie river at 25 pounds a morgen. He then decided to buy land in the Free State instead because he was afraid the lions were going to eat his prized Brahman cattle stud. He paid R100 per morgen for the Free State land. It is now the opposite. A game farm in the greater Kruger area goes for up to R100 000,00 per hectare compared to R25 000,00 here in the FS.

A friend of mine who owns a bungalow in a private reserve said to me that this bungalow is probably his worst investment but the one that gives him the most pleasure.

The Garden Route National Park (Tsitsikamma, Knysna, Wilderness) has amongst others great natural beauty. When a person thinks about historical Knysna a person might think of the Woodcutters and how they lived in the surrounding Knysna forests and for over 200 years made an existence from woodcutting. In 1939 the Knysna forests became protected and many of the Woodcutters of the bygone era retired to the small historical human settlement called Karatara and descendants from the earlier Woodcutters still reside there. George Rex is said to be the founder of Knysna (1765 -1839).

“Whether it's the best of times or the worst of times, it's the only time we've got.”

Did you know that the beautiful Sable was originally called the Harris buck? The old British explorers named animals after themselves, like the Burchell's Zebra, the Burchell's Cougal, Burchell's Courser, and then you get Bradfield's Hornbill, Dickenson's Kestrel, Grey's Lark, Bulwer's Petrel, Wilson's Phalarope and many more.

Table Mountain has almost 1 500 species of sensitive fynbos and the King Protea which is South Africa’s national flower can be seen in the Table Mountain National Park. Duiwelspiek (Devils Peak) which is visible from Table Mountain is the topic of a legend. Roughly according to this legend a certain Mr Jan van Hunk who lived in the Table Mountain National Park region in the 1700’s was very fond of smoking his pipe but his wife did not allow him to smoke the pipe in the house. One day when he smoked his pipe at the foothills of the mountain he met a stranger who was also fond of smoking his pipe and they started a pipe smoking competition. They smoked so much that their pipe smoke covered the mountains in a white cloud. At the end of the story it is mentioned that van Hunk has won the competition and that the stranger was none other than the devil and therefore the name Duiwelspiek .

“Whether it's the best of times or the worst of times, it's the only time we've got.”